Maple Sugaring Time!!

Over the weekend it was 49 degrees here - quite a contrast to just a week ago. 40 degree days in the spring is when the sap starts flowing, so we tapped one of our sugar maple trees - the sugaring season has officially begun! Now, I need to find the rest of the taps - I apparently washed up a bunch of them last year and put them somewhere for safekeeping other than along with all the other maple sugar supplies... But, my husband has procrastinated a little bit on our planned boiler upgrade, so once again, we have stumbled into the sugar season, eager but slightly behind. :-) He'll get the stove functioning by this next weekend, and I'll tap a bunch of trees on Wednesday, so we will have a good supply of sap to boil next Saturday. Last year we made 6 gallons of syrup. This year, we hope to double that, and hold a little pancake breakfast sometime in March for our friends and neighbors to raise some money for one of our favorite charities. Well, but, for today, back to thinking about the studio and that kiln that needs to be unloaded!

The First Bisque Firing in the new Studio!

Well, I've opened up the kiln, and this is what I see ....no apparent explosions, no nasty cracks, just a slew of nicely baked pots, now waiting to be finished with slips, glazes and student imagination, and then run through the glaze firing. Delightful!

The Studio is coming together

Here is a pic of the new studio, showing the slab roller, the student work tables, and the door into the kiln and ware storage area. I'm so pleased at how it has finally started to come together! I have a great batch of students this semester - 16 in each class, one overload each but it still isn't too cramped. And they are all working well together. Some of them are already pretty focused potters, and I have one man auditing the class who is quite an accomplished sculptor. All in all, it makes it pleasant to get up in the morning, looking forward to the delightful things I get to do.